Trial opens for Peoria woman accused of plotting her husband's death

Tuesday

Apr 22, 2014 at 10:39 PM

Andy Kravetz of the Journal Star

PEORIA — The boyfriend of a Peoria woman allowed police to listen to their conversations about her desire to kill her ex-husband last year because he was worried she was serious, a prosecutor told jurors on Tuesday.

Yet, that same man later told police he wasn’t that worried, given they had other conversations about the matter and that he didn’t believe them, countered the woman’s attorney.

Carrie L. Alcorn, 38, of 2012 W. Wilson St. faces a single count of solicitation of murder for hire and faces up to 30 years in prison if convicted.

Court records in Oklahoma County, Okla., indicate Alcorn filed for divorce from Shannon L. Alcorn on Oct. 17, 2007. She received custody of two children — a 12-year-old boy and a 9-year-old girl — when the divorce was finalized by a judge on Jan. 23, 2008.

Both sides agree that changed at some point when she and her ex-husband jointly opted to transfer custody to him, so he could enroll them in school. But Joseph Borsberry, her attorney, said his client then agreed to leave her son in Oklahoma as he was having trouble at school. There wasn’t a child custody battle as prosecutors allege, he said.

But the state planned on using a recorded conversation between the boyfriend and Alcorn where they discussed finding a plane to get to Oklahoma, obtaining a weapon and a possible alibi. And rather than idle chatter, prosecutors contend Alcorn was serious about the threat.

Borsberry countered that what his client said was bad but noted she was drinking at the time and later made no attempts to follow through on what they talked about.

Andy Kravetz can be reached at 686-3283 or akravetz@pjstar.com. Follow him on Twitter @andykravetz.